Container car and container therefor



' Aug. 6, 1935. G. c. WOODRUFF 2,010,212

(EONTAINER CAR AND CONTAINER THEREFOR I Filed Sept. 11, 1951 3-Sheets-$heet 1 1 E AI 6, 1935- G. c. WOODRUFF T 2,010,212

CONTAINER CAR AND CONTAINER THEREFOR Filed Sept. 11, 1951 s Sheets-Sheet 2 I Q Q Q Q c 1 (a s, Q I

9 Q Q l 1935- G. c. WOODRUFF 2,010,212

' CONTAINER CAR AND C ONTAINER THEREFOR Filed Sept. 11, 19:51 5 Sheets-Sheet 3 ti I UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE CONTAINER CAR AND CONTAINER THEREFOR Graham 0. Woodruff, Bronxville, N. Y., assignor to The L. C. L. Corporation, a corporation of Delaware Application September 11, 1931, Serial No. 562,372

3 Claims. (Cl. 105366) This invention relates to improvements in con- 1 i a p pla v w of a container a y tainer cars and containers therefor, and particuand containers embody y inventionlarly to container cars of drop-side type and con- F 2 i a Side elevation f e & 1 0613 and tainers designed for use in connection therewith. Containers, Showing O Of h D dOOIS in e One object of the invention is to provide a condown positionstruction and arrangement of container holding Fig. 3 is a front elevation of one of the concompartments in a drop side container car and tainers.

containers adapted to be received therein, where- 4 is a fragmentary p p i w f a co by acomparatively large number of compa t tainer car showing a mode of converting a standments may be furnished and the containers arard container car into a container car designed 1O ranged in transverse pairs in the compart e t to hold containers arranged in accordance with Another object of the invention is to provide the present t na construction of container car with auxiliary 5 is a Seetion On line of guides or abutments which facilitate the placing Fig 6 is Seetien On line o 5 of the containers in position, or their removal, Fig; is a t n On line Of while effectually preventing shifting of the same Referring new o particularly to e d awon the car during t t, ings, l designates a container car of drop-side Still another object of the invention is to protype, having a floor 2, Stationary end Walls 3, and vide a construction of container car whereby a transverse intermediate walls, bulkheads or par- Standard type car having comparatively long and titions 4 forming with the walls 3 compartments 20 wide compartments for holding a limited number a compartment being normally open to of large size containers may be converted at a pmnde doorway for the compartment at each low cost into a type of car for holding a larger Side of the Each m is ajdapted to be number of smaller containers arranged in trans Closed by a door or gate 6 hmged at Its lower f l Verse rows of a pair or greater number of com so as to be swung upwardly to a closed position 25 tainers than a pair in each row. i f wg g g g f 5 9 1 A still further object of the invention is to ggg ig g ggg: z z s gz g ggi provide auxiliary longitudinal-shift-preventing attachments for application to a standard cons of the bulkheads 4 at the sldes the door tainer car adapted to receive containers of a pre- The doors 6 may be so mountgd that l determined large size each of the same width as may be swung downward to Vertlcal posmon or they may be so mounted that they may swing the normally Wlde compartment and of a length downward to a horizontal position to serve as equal to the width of the car, whereby the width gangways or loading platforms to bridge the 3 g l i i g g g f g spaces between the compartments and a loading 35 ggi gss g souas zg g g fi f g gg g station or stationary platform ailfingside the track on which the car is disposed, e compartments container of less width than a container of the are, as customary, of comparatively shanow depth 40 to i tainer to e moun e erein, u ey may e 40 versely alined containers of the predetermined f any depth desired as circumstances or narrow width and each of a length substantially ditions may require in t 3 i n d 0f z ih ,uV Ee ebY1 Q; i Each container 1 is fof rectangular or oblongl Se 0 0 1 e 0 e Y Ongl 11 me rectangular form and o specia construction, an g-p v i g g g a comprises a steel-framed, steel-sheathed water- 45 p men 5 y 6 Ten e e 86 W 0 0 roof container provided with depending supcontainers of different sizes and suitable for conporting legs 3 t; the four corners of the bottom a i s different sized articles or different thereof, lifting brackets 9 at the four corners of miigrlilfisigh d h b t th the tlolpdthereof, ang. hitngiel dsors l0 a3 the flronizi 50 t 1 -ese an 00 er 0 oe 5 in view, e inwhic oors are a ap e o e secure in c ose vent-ion gonsistsdof the features Ff construction, position by a vertically disposed, oscillatory lock;1 com me an errangemen p 8, re ning bar ll mounted on one of the doors an after fully described and claimed, reference carrying at its ends bolts 12 to engage keepers I3 being had to the accompanying drawings, in on the container above and below the doorway. W i td Any suitable means may be employed for oscil- 55 lating the bar H, a hand lever I 4 being shown in the present instance as provided for that purpose, said lever being also apertured to serve as a locking staple for engagement with a keeper eye 55 on the other door. A hook it carried by one end of a chain H fastened at its opposite end to the door carrying the keeper eye is shown as provided for engagement with the eye to hold the staple in locking position, but a padlock or other locking means may be employed for the purpose, and, if desired, a suitable type of seal may be used which must be broken before the doors can be opened to allow access to the container, and the breakage of which will indicate that the fastening means has been tampered with or released.

The drawings show a container car of standard type in which the end walls 3 and bulkheads 4 are spaced to form compartments 5 each of a width to receive a single container of a predetermined standard large size, that is, of such a width as to fit within such a compartment and of the same length as the width of the car. Each container '3 herein shown is of less width than such a standard large container and also of less length than such a standard large container, namely, of approximately one-half the length of a standard container, so that two containers 7 may be placed in transverse alinement in each compartment instead of a single large container corresponding in length to the width of the car. In order to adapt these smaller sized containers to be used in one, two or more or all of the compartments of a standard car I provide auxiliary sockets properly arranged to receive the legs of the smaller containers and position the same in the compartments, and I also provide novel auxiliary abutments or longitudinal-shift-preventing attachments to suitably reduce the widths of the compartments to properly receive the smaller sized containers 1 and to prevent the same from shifting longitudinally of the car. All compartments of the car may be provided with a full complement of sets of standard and auxiliary leg receiving sockets as permanent fixtures, but the longitudinal-shift-preventing attachments may be used or not, as required. According to the number of the compartments in which these attachments are used, the car may be adapted to hold containers all of a given small size, or certain of the compartments may be equipped with the attachments to hold small sized containers or left unequipped with them, so' that both standard and small sized containers may be carried on one and the same car. The longitudinalshift-preventing attachments are so constructed that they may be readily and conveniently applied and removed so as to render the car interchangeable for use in transporting either a full complement of standard or small sized containers or a mixed complement of standard and small sized containers, varying in number relative to each other, according to service demands.

I will first describe the arrangement of the auxiliary sockets and then the construction and use of the longitudinal-shift-preventing attachments for converting the compartments of the car at will from standard-width to narrowerwidth compartments, or vice versa.

The legs 8 are adapted to seat within sets of auxiliary receiving sockets t8, 38a and i9, I911 provided for their reception in the compartments 5, each socket being secured to the top of the floor 2 or fastened in depressions therein and being adapted to loosely receive the lower ends of the legs so that the container may be fitted down into position without interference and in a ready and convenient manner. As shown particularly in Fig. 4, eight such auxiliary sockets are provided in each compartment 5, four on each side of the longitudinal center of the car, and so disposed that each compartment, when properly decreased in width from original size, as hereinafter described, will contain a pair of transversely disposed containers l, which containers may be loaded and unloaded from either side of the car. The legs 8 are provided with guide shoes 8' for guiding contact with the doors and other surfaces in guiding the containers into and out of position, and the sides of the containers may be provided with suitable reinforcing and guiding ribs 29 for engagement with guide bars 2| at the sides of each compartment to further assist in guiding the container into and out of position.

i In a standard type of drop-side container car, of approximately fifty foot length, such as shown, the car is divided by bulkheads into six compartments, extending from side to side thereof, and each container is of a width and length suincient to fully occupy an entire compartment. Such compartments and containers are of excessive size for the purposes for which the present invention is designed, and is is therefore necessary to decrease the width of the container compartments, with respect to standard width, and to provide a suitable arrangement of auxiliary container receiving sockets in order that two containers of reduced size with respect to standard size may be disposed in each compartment. Cars expressly constructed for the purposes of the present invention may, of course, be provided and are, in fact, in use, but I have shown in Figs. 4 to 7, inclusive, a type of construction for converting a standard car into a car having the necessary number of smaller compartments to receive containers arranged in transverse pairs, without the necessity of altering the body construction of the car. In thus converting a standard car attachments in the form of transverse guide bars or rails serving as auxiliary abutments or longitudinal-shiftpreventing devices are provided. The guide bar 2! of each end compartment 5 adjacent to the stationary end wall 3 is mounted on posts 22 spaced inwardly from the end wall 3 and secured to and reinforced from the end wall at their upper ends by bracing and distance blocks 23, while the guide bars or rails adjacent the bulkheads 4 are similarly mounted on posts 24 and reinforced and spaced at their upper ends from the bulkheads by distance blocks 25, by which means the compartments, which are normally of a width equal to the distance between each end wall and the adjacent bulkhead and between adjacent bulkheads, are reduced in width without removal of floor or bulkheads or otherwise reconstructing the original body structure of the car. The original sockets provided to receive the legs of the standard large size containers, which are recessed into the floor 2, are here indicated at 25 in their original positions in which, as shown, they underlie the posts 22 and 24. Preferably in converting the large compartments into small compartments these sockets 26 are closed by filler blocks 27 which form pedestals or seats for the posts and to which may be secured angle irons 28 for firmly securing and bracing the posts in position. By making the parts 2|, 22 and 23 detachable, one and the same container car may be used as a standard container car and converted at will into a car having the increased number of compartments of reduced size for receiving the container 1.

It will thus be seen that by the use of the attachment elements comprising the auxiliary abutment rails and the means described for stably but separably fastening the same to the car floor and the car end walls permanent abutments 4, the width of any compartment 3 may be reduced from standard width to a narrower width suitable for holding containers of less width than standard large-sized containers without in any manner changing the permanent construction of the car. Also that by the use of the auxiliary sockets l8, I8a, 19, I911 provision is made for the proper positioning in each compartment so narrowed of two transversely alined containers I, each of a length substantially equal to one half of the width of the car, so that the abutment rails 2! will hold such containers against shifting longitudinally of the car, while the auxiliary sockets hold them from shifting transversely of the car. Such provision of the attachment rails 2i and auxiliary sockets further allows a single container of a width corresponding to the width of the narrowed compartment but of a length equal to the width of the car by seating the legs of such a container in the outer sets of sockets i8 and 59, should it be desired to use containers of less than standard width but of standard length. In this case, of course, the intermediate sockets liia, 18a, 19a, l9a would not be used, but their presence allows either a single narrow, full-length container or a pair of containers E to be interchangeably used in each compartment equipped with the auxiliary abutment rails and sockets. Also it will be seen that by simply removing the attachment rails 2| of any one or more of the compartments the original condition of the compartments, adapting them to again receive full-sized containers, will be restored.

By this means a car built to receive standard containers of large size, one in each compartment, can be converted to hold in each compartment a single container of full length but reduced width with respect to standard size, or to hold in each compartment two small containers, such as the containers '5, and by modifying some, but not all, of the compartments in the manner described, the car may be adapted to carry a mixed complement of containers of different sizes. An important feature of the invention is that by the use of the attachment rails mounted in the manner described these rails lie parallel with and at the same level as the abutments 4, so that they take the place of the abutments to fully perform the functions thereof, that is, not only to hold a container from longitudinal shifting but also to guide the container into and out of the compartment in loading and unloading actions, whether the container be moved vertically or laterally into and out of the compartment. The attachments thus provide simple and effective means for converting the compartments of a standard container car to adapt the same to hold different sized containers without the necessity of mutilating or reconstructing the car or modifying any of its permanent fixtures.

From the foregoing description, taken in con nection with the drawings, the construction and mode of operation of the invention will be readily understood without a further and extended description, and it will be seen that the invention provides a container car and construction of container whereby a large number of containers may be mounted on a standard sized car and arranged so that a plurality of containers may be held in each container compartment, thus allowing a maximum number of containers for articles up to a given size to be mounted on the car. These containers may be so constructed that diiferent kinds of materials, or different lots of the same material, may be stored and shipped in each container and the lots kept separate from each other, while affording greater convenience in storing and removing the lots of goods. Other advantages of the invention will also be understood and appreciated by those versed in the art.

While the constructions of the parts herein shown are preferred, it is to be understood that changes in the form, proportion and details of construction of the parts may be made, within the scope of the appended claims, without departing from the spirit or sacrificing any of the advantages of the invention.

What I claim is:-

l. A container car having end walls, bulkheads arranged in spaced relation between the end walls and cooperating therewith to divide the car into transverse compartments, sockets in the floor of each compartment adjacent to the ends of the end walls and the bulkheads, filler blocks fitted in said sockets, posts secured to said filler blocks, rails carried by said posts and disposed in spaced relation to the end walls and bulkheads, and other sockets arranged in each compartment between the rails therein to provide a set of retainer sockets in each compartment on opposite sides of the longitudinal center of the car.

2. A container car having bulkheads arranged in spaced relation to divide the car into transverse compartments, sockets in the floor of each compartment, filler blocks fitted in said sockets, posts secured to said filler blocks, rails carried by said posts and disposed in spaced relation to the bulkheads, and other sockets arranged in each compartment between the rails therein to provide a set of retainer sockets in each compartment on opposite sides of the longitudinal center of the car.

3. In a gondola car having a longitudinal series of transverse container receiving compartments separated by transverse partitions spaced to provide longitudinal-shift-preventing abutments for containers of predetermined width, container leg receiving sockets secured to the floor of the car adjacent to said abutments, attachment members applied at the sides of a compartment and comprising posts fitted and secured at their lower ends in said sockets, rails carried by the posts and braces connecting said rails with the abutments, the rails being arranged parallel with each other and with the abutments and forming auxiliary longitudinalshift-preventing abutments for a container of relatively less width, and auxiliary sockets secured to the floor of the car and arranged in duplicate on opposite sides of the longitudinal center of said compartment for re ceiving the legs of a plurality of containers of the lesser size.

GRAHAM C. WOODRUFF. 

